Alexander Archipenko

This coin celebrates the painter and graphic artist Alexander Archipenko. A famous 20th-century sculptor and founder of the 20th-century Art Nouveau style in sculpture, Archipenko revolutionized art. Born in Kyiv, Archipenko was for his entire life fascinated by the beauty of his own country, the magic of the Trypillian culture, the antiquity of Cuman (Polovtsi) sculptures, and the colors of peasant ceramics. Archipenko`s works are characterized by dynamic and laconic compositions and forms. Most of his compositions are done in Cubic, Constructivist, and Abstract Art styles. He synthesized painting and sculpture by combining two and three dimensional forms. Archipenko has left behind over a thousand sculptures and paintings.

Obverse:

Above is Ukraine`s small coat of arms, with the issue year - 2017 beneath it; to the left is the semicircular legend УКРАЇНА (Ukraine), and to the right is the coin face value -2 ГРИВНІ (2 hryvnias), below which is the mint mark of the NBU Banknote Printing and Minting Works; against a smooth background is a conventionalized composition depicting the hands of a master modeling a sculpture.

Reverse:

There is a portrait of Alexander Archipenko, to the right of which are the years of his birth and death - 1887 o 1964 (vertically below); there are also a conventionalized sculpture by Archipenko and the semicircular legends ОЛЕКСАНДР (Alexander) (below) АРХИПЕНКО (Archipenko) (to the right).